tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1178284085080580526.post1639780154082017403..comments2018-01-31T17:37:37.978-08:00Comments on Overweening Generalist: On a Few of the Many Varieties of Codes and Deceptive Behaviors in Historymichaelhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13526042582094867513noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1178284085080580526.post-66419863216464338202016-10-31T14:21:41.092-07:002016-10-31T14:21:41.092-07:00@Eric- I wonder when I&#39;ll be able to get to Th...@Eric- I wonder when I&#39;ll be able to get to Thomson&#39;s history of TV. Yea, the Zodiac: I&#39;ve almost spent too much time studying that &quot;case.&quot; <br /><br />@hilary chase - Yeah on the Durkheim! This expounding on the sequence of perception, from the level of obliviousness to abstractions upon abstractions: it&#39;s a requirement for intellectuals. Or seems to be. Further examples seem never-ending. As well they should be.<br /><br />I use the sociology of knowledge&#39;s circular-causal system a lot.<br /><br />Korzybski spent incredible energy in trying to get us to become conscious of the orders of abstraction, because he thought there was a &quot;logical fate&quot; to them: mixing the orders, or beginning with axioms (after the pre-verbal &quot;event level&quot;) that were false-to-facts led to a &quot;logical fate.&quot; (EX: St. Thomas Aquinas and pals arguing over how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.)<br /><br />Lakoff reverse-engineers the idea very common among hard-core conservatives in Unistat: Poor people deserve their poverty. Why? Because you should have had a very Strict Father figure in your childhood who punished you until you took responsibility for your own well-being and finances. Children are born bad and need to be punished until they &quot;know&quot; right from wrong. Children should be brought up to learn to take care of themselves - and really, ONLY themselves - so that they don&#39;t require help from others once they&#39;re 18. If you&#39;re poor, you failed this: you deserve your poverty. (Can we see the holes in this order of abstractions and logical fate?)<br /><br />At the same time: playing in the fields of the lofty levels of abstractions seems to lead - if we take the right roads - to wonder. <br /><br />Thanks for the thoughtful comments, Ms. Chase.michaelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13526042582094867513noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1178284085080580526.post-40316372958269081012016-10-31T09:42:23.406-07:002016-10-31T09:42:23.406-07:00What a wonderful thought by Vico: &quot;People fir...What a wonderful thought by Vico: &quot;People first feel things without noticing them, then notice them with inner stress and disturbance, and finally reflect on them with a clear mind&quot;; Vico &quot;decoding&quot; and expounding the sociology of knowledge as a circular-causal system (externalization &lt;---&gt; objectivation &lt;----&gt; internalization). Vico&#39;s thought associated my thought with Emile Durkheim&#39;s thought : &quot;Thinking by concepts, is not merely seeing reality on its most general side, but it is projecting a light upon the sensation which illuminates it, penetrates it and transforms it.&quot; (Emile Durkheim, &quot;Elementary Forms of Religious Life&quot; , p. 435 )<br />hilary chasehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08635439407166387986noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1178284085080580526.post-52058305459279561162016-10-29T09:08:52.007-07:002016-10-29T09:08:52.007-07:00M, glad you enjoyed &quot;Try to Tell the Story&qu...M, glad you enjoyed &quot;Try to Tell the Story&quot;. This new book rocks. He looks at the history of TV as the history of how we became a screen dominated culture. I suspect you would love Thomson met-noir novel &quot;Suspects&quot;. <br /><br />The Zodiac Killer had a fascination with codes as well.Eric Wagnerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04312033917401203598noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1178284085080580526.post-15924447102505961472016-10-29T00:29:48.350-07:002016-10-29T00:29:48.350-07:00@chas- I hadn&#39;t thought about Vico&#39;s lines...@chas- I hadn&#39;t thought about Vico&#39;s lines in those terms, but I think that&#39;s a valid and sound interpretation, so good catch! And thanx for the kinds woids.<br /><br />@Eric- Did I ever tell you I read Thomson&#39;s memoir about growing up during the Blitz? I loved that book. <br />I&#39;m glad you thought of Elgar. I was going to add a bunch of stuff on Turing and Bletchley Park, but thought I&#39;d already tapped enough semantic levels of &quot;code&quot; for one spew. michaelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13526042582094867513noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1178284085080580526.post-2199673482647655532016-10-28T14:10:34.505-07:002016-10-28T14:10:34.505-07:00Nice post. I loved &quot;Three Days of the Condor&...Nice post. I loved &quot;Three Days of the Condor&quot;. Your final section made me think of Elgar&#39;s Enigma Variations. By the way, I just started David Thomson&#39;s new Television: A Biography. It look terrific.Eric Wagnerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04312033917401203598noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1178284085080580526.post-43097341266325547362016-10-28T05:05:29.367-07:002016-10-28T05:05:29.367-07:00&quot;People first feel things without noticing th...&quot;People first feel things without noticing them, then notice them with inner stress and disturbance, and finally reflect on them with a clear mind.&quot;--Nice description of the first 3 &quot;circuits&quot; as explicated by Bob and Tim.<br /><br />As always, deeply appreciative of your offerings.chashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17923105949653410251noreply@blogger.com